Are you tired of shifting gears?

[Ebm]

Been manually shifting gears since 1963, as has my wife since about 1972. We've only owned stick-shift cars since our first new car (a 1972 model year Ford), meaning that all of the "family sedans" along the way have been MT.

Talk about a timely thread . . . with our ages bracketing the number 70 (for a few more months, anyway) we replaced her Legacy this past Thursday. The 2019 WRX (6M) makes it eight for eight with three pedals. She's still just as insistent on having a MT as I am, and I might have a reputation around here for being a MT holdout.

So I guess neither of us is tired of shifting yet.


Norm

It's okay Norm, there are manual enthusiasts at all ages! I'm in my late 20s and have been driving a manual since 18. In a performance car, manual all the way. In a rock crawler or off-roader, I have to go with the auto.

Sponsored

 

[66Bronc1]

No for me. I have owned manuals in all my sporty cars except for one- my 2017 Camaro RS. For the very first time I decided to go with the 8 speed automatic. I thought wow, all those gears, performance, fuel economy, no more shifting, what can be or go wrong? Big mistake- I choose probably one of the worst automatics. The shudder and slippage problem was so bad, the car was at the dealer almost more than I drove it. And the transmission seemed sluggish and inconsistent, upshifted too soon some times. Using the paddle shifters was OK but the gas mileage dropped a lot. So I traded it in for my 2018 Mustang GT, 6 speed manual.

I have two cars a Jeep Wrangler and an old Ford Bronco- all manuals. I love my manuals.

 

[fiveoboy01]

I've owned 5 mustangs, and every one has had a manual transmission.

 

[Condor1970]

So, I guess to answer the question, am I tired of shifting yet? Well, NO!! In fact, I really look forward to driving to work everyday.

Many a day, I wish the commute was actually longer, with more twisty roads

 

[Hack]

I'm really tired of driving my automatic Ford Explorer winter beater. I really wanted to drive my beater Porsche to work this morning just so I could shift gears a few times, but the cold temperatures -12 F made me decide not to. The heat in the 944 isn't the greatest.

Turns out the bridges were super slippery and I barely missed a 4 car pileup on the way in to work. I'm glad I was in the Explorer - it's a much better vehicle to get hit in than that tiny P-car.

 

[SVTSNAKE355]

I've owned 5 mustangs, and every one has had a manual transmission.

That's the way to do it

 

[Commbubba19]

love driving a stick

hate modern manual transmissions (in general)
- either break easy
- crappy linkage
- horrible clutch engagement
- poor gear ratios
- sometimes having a manual limits higher option package availability

i'm also in the drive 2+ hours a day sometimes and most of the time in busy rush hour traffic.

still, i love a good manual when done right in the right car.

 

[Vegas5OH]

I like the stick I just dont like the gearing. But I understand the trans wasnt designed for 800+ hp 150mph pulls lol

 

[Bullitt0819]

Doesn't matter if someone else isn't bothered by sitting in traffic daily with a manual. It only matters if you are. You'll find people that would rather sit in 4hr traffic jams with a manual rather than automatic.
I have a '19 manual. I have no regrets. But I work from home, no commute. If I had a substantial commute that involved stop/go, no way would I have a manual GT. I don't care what anyone says. To me, it sucks compared to the ease of an automatic in those conditions. No brainer.

I just moved from the SF Bay Area a year ago (second only, sometimes, to LA for bad traffic). Before that, I commuted daily with a '08 Bullitt; the last stint was an 80mile round trip from San Jose to Pleasanton on Hwy 680 (for a time, it was 'reverse commute,' but I had to get on the road before 7am to not get stuck in slow-and-go). My strategy was to sit back 5-6 car lengths and idle it in 1st or second, as all around me jackrabbitted and rode their brakes. Yeah, the jackrabbits/asses would constantly cut in front of me, but I would pass them over and over and beat them to the offramp more often than not. When I traded that car in for a '19 Bullitt, it had the original clutch and brakes with 135K miles on it.

 

[druby]

When I first got my manual, after driving an auto for about 10 years, I almost had some reservations at first, as most of my driving is boring commute stuff. I've adapted and wouldn't have a car like this (2015 GT PP) without a manual. I've rented a 10 speed for a couple business trips, and it's just not the same for me. The 10 speed just shifts too fast to really get to enjoy the sound of the 5.0. If I was into racing and showing off I would probably do the auto since you can't shift that fast with a manual, but I'm not so I absolutely love the 6 speed. The sound is just awesome. My office looks over a stop light area, and I hear muscle cars throughout the day, and you can spot an auto or manual right off the bat. Pick what you want and enjoy it.

 

[Ghost50]

Nope.

It isn't my daily and I live in Houston so the traffic here is a bitch. Maybe if I drove it every day and had to suffer through stop and go I'd get sick of it

 

[Grayden4]

In my 51 years of driving (yes I'm an old fart), I have owned 31 vehicles, and only 4 were automatics (tow vehicles). I'm afraid that the standard transmission is a dying technology.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

In my 51 years of driving (yes I'm an old fart), I have owned 31 vehicles, and only 4 were automatics (tow vehicles). I'm afraid that the standard transmission is a dying technology.

5 auto trans out of 40+ owned (none since the '91 Syclone). None of the five had a manual option but had other compelling attributes.

 

[earlSpilner]

All my cars are manual. Including my truck that is my winter daily. I sit in traffic like everyone else and have never thought "damn i wish i had an auto right now".

I mean if I was trying to shave in traffic, while holding a coffee, and making a call on my cell phone, then ya an auto would be better.

 

[Bluelightning]

Love my manual, and don't get tired of driving it. I live in Houston and commute in the wonderful traffic every morning for close to 30 miles, and while I don't daily my Mustang, my 2011 Accord that I use to commute is a manual as well. Doesn't bother me in traffic at all.

Sponsored